NORTH CAROLINA, USA — It is that time of the year again. This weekend, we spring forward -- which means you lose an hour of sleep. That also means you will have a later sunrise and more daylight in the evening.
It’s all part of daylight saving time.
Now, some North Carolina lawmakers are filing a bill to make daylight saving time permanent.
The ritual of adjusting your clocks annually has become a headache for some.
“It becomes a debate because, you know, people are inconvenienced by the switch,” Daniel Hall, dean of the Earl N Phillips School of Business at High Point University, said.
A poll by High Point University found 46% of North Carolinians surveyed want to keep daylight saving time permanent, 20% want to keep standard time permanent, and 21% want to keep the annual tradition of changing our clocks twice a year. The rest said they were unsure.
“Spring forward, it's a little bit more popular than then fall back because you get to at least get a little bit more sunshine at the end of the day,” Hall said.
The debate is back at the forefront for lawmakers.
“One of the things I hear from constituents, every time we have to do the clocks, either forward or backward is how much they hate it,” State Representative Jason Saine said.
He filed House Bill 326, an act to adopt daylight saving time year around.
“When I’m not disrupted in that way, and I get my normal sleep... I stay on a structured schedule," Saine said. "I perform better and I think I think that's most people."
Health experts say the time change and lack of sleep can impact your health -- but there are ways to manage it.
“Just making sure to stick to a sleep routine," Dr. John Card with Novant Health said. "Try not to sleep in because you have missed that hour that you were looking for as well. Being outdoors as well can help get your body used to the sun again to understand when to be asleep and when to be up and awake about."
Saine said his bill is getting a lot of support and whether it is sticking to daylight saving or standard time, the goal is to get rid of the clock change altogether.
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.